ETHOS Young Leader Milo Kirk speaks to Kris Aves, a former Metropolitan police officer who was paralysed from the Westminster Bridge terror attack in March 2017 when he was hit by the van driven by the terrorist. Kris from Barnet, London, who is a dad of two and an avid Tottenham supporter spent time working Camden response teams and then as a liaison officer still within the Metropolitan police, was off-duty at the time and was picking up an award that day for his extensive work policing the Brexit protests in and around Westminster. He was walking across the bridge to celebrate with his colleagues when the attack occurred.
Following the attack, Kris spent seven months in hospital, unable to live at home with his wife and young children as he was unable to access most of the rooms in his wheelchair and his home was unfit for his current condition. After having extensive spine and leg surgery, he was unable to bear weight for many weeks and was informed that he would never walk again. Some four years later he will be competing in the 2022 Cairns cup, playing his golf at The Shire London through working with the Golf Trust; a charity that works with people with disabilities that introduced him to the Paragolfer some years ago.
Kris speaks to Milo about all things policing and his deeply empowering experience post-injury; from his background before joining, his time in Met response teams and liaison role, the attack on Westminster bridge and subsequent rehabilitation from his injuries. The interview is an honest deep dive into the emotional and physical experience of recovering from his injuries from the traumatic experience; talking about the importance of his family, watching football, the policing family, charity work, and of course, his long-lasting love of Golf; that has gone from the societies he established in Camden pre-injury to competing in the Cairns Cup in May 2022 for Team Europe.
report by Ajay Hanspal